Guest Commentary: Tread lightly in cutting child development services

When it comes to public policy, the focus is often on what divides us, but there's really much more that unites us.

We can all agree we want to support families and ensure all children have the opportunity to be successful; we want to strengthen the growth and development of our communities; and we want to ensure we're making the best possible use of our limited resources. Those basic principles are paramount to First Steps, a community early childhood initiative in Kent County.

As co-chairs of the First Steps Commission, we join a growing list of early childhood advocates that includes the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Business Roundtable, law enforcement officials, and military leaders. Their support and ours is based in large part on research that shows investing in young children can have profound and lasting effects on students' performance in school, crime prevention, and the quality of our workforce.

A RAND Corp. analysis of several early childhood programs found the typical return ranges from $2 to $7 for every $1 invested.

That is why some recent budget decisions in Lansing are of such concern. With a deficit approaching $2 billion, we recognize there are no easy answers and everyone is going to have to share in the pain.

However, it is important that we minimize the cuts to services that support the education, health and development of our children. They are the future!

Throughout the budget process, Gov. Jennifer Granholm and state legislators have targeted numerous early childhood programs for outright elimination or significant reduction, including:
Preschool for 30,000 4-year-olds.
Family support programs aimed at preventing child abuse and neglect.
Funding to improve the quality of child care and make it accessible to low-income working families.
Funding to health care providers who serve low-income children.
Infrastructure support to ensure the state and local communities are coordinating early childhood services, maximizing resources, and reducing waste.

These proposed cuts could ultimately cost taxpayers millions more than they save.
There are other options. For one, elected officials must take a hard look at the amount of money we spend on our state prison system. Michigan spends $2 billion a year on the Department of Corrections.

We send more people to prison, keep them locked up longer, and spend more money per prisoner than other Great Lakes states. The non-partisan Citizens Research Council of Michigan estimates a savings of $400 million a year if we were in line with our neighbors.
That is just one example. There are a number of structural reforms recommended by bipartisan and non-partisan organizations, and we urge leaders of both parties to put aside their differences and work together to give them serious consideration.

We are fortunate in Kent County that our community is committed to the principle of prevention and that the private sector has stepped up to invest heavily in innovative programs that, among other things, prevent child abuse, prepare children for school, and keep them out of the emergency room and hospital.

The loss of public funding for those efforts would undermine the significant private investment that already has been made. Most importantly, it would undermine our children and our future prosperity. That's something none of us can afford.

Doug DeVos and Kate Pew Wolters are co-chairs of the First Steps Commission. First Steps is working to develop a system of support services for young children and their families in Kent County.